My Toddler Climbs Out of His Car Seat. What to Do?

I know it seems cruel but tighten the straps. You only need to be able to put two fingers between your child and the straps. It's very dangerous. If you get into an accident he could go flying and break his neck. The shoulder straps are almost more imporant then the lap straps but both together is complete safety. My daughter at about the same age figured how to worm out too. I made a big deal out of it ever time. I pulled over as soon as safely possible and put her back in a tighten the strap. She would cry but I would rather hear crying then silence after an accident I would tell myself. My friend the other day with her children in the back seat got T-Boned by some one not paying attention to a red light. Thank you they are all OK. The two teen girls that deaded resently in the Northwest school distict were not wearing seat belts.

One of the other mothers had a good idea to call the manufacturer of the car seat. They might have suggestions or products available to help with the situation.

Also, please do not use the car seats with the "safety" bar that comes down over the child's head. These seats are dangerous!

If you figure something out, please post it so we can use those strategies with our own children! :)

Hi B.! I had the same carseat and a simular problem around the same age. What worked for me was to stop the car every time he came out and put him back in and used a firm voice and told him that we were not going anywhere unless he stayed in his seat. I even had a few trips back home for a time out. With kids that young the time outs have to happen fast,right when the misbehavior begins.I know it is a major pain and not always feesable,but setting clear limits and following through on what you say has worked well with us. My son is five now and always seeing how far he can go! What also works for me is that instead of yelling(they tune that out so fast) I use a calm voice by singing what I need to say. I start with Uh Oh,so sad,time for a little bedroom time until you can be calm. My son knows just by the UhOh! I learned it from my Love and Logic parenting books. The authors are great,I also took the parenting class based on the books. I hope this helps!By the way,I too did alot of research on the carseats and the Britax are my favorite.( being a former nanny I have used many different carseats over the years and the Britax are the easiest to use for me.)

I am having the same problem. My little stinker is 26 mths & the only thing I can think of is to get the seat belt bins you use to keep your seat belt buckle from falling all the way down & putting them under the harness so he can't push it down. It is trouble at this stage. He doesn't like the straps on his shoulders so he pulls them down.

I would contact the car seat manufacturer and see if they have any suggestions on ways to physically keep him in the car seat or alternate equipment you could use to accomplish this purpose. I would also go to one of those car seat checks to make sure that you are using the car seat properly. I know it seems strange to think that you could be using it improperly, but over half of the car seats used are either improperly installed or the straps are not correctly placed. While there you could tell them that he has been getting out and see if the they have any suggestions for you.

Good luck!

Hi B.
My daughter is 22 months and I am having the same problem. These children today are very smart, they seek to figure out stuff. I am still not sure what to do but I know we both need to find out because this can be very dangerous. These children do not like those car seats. I know they are for their safety and protection but I don't like them either, but I use it. I will be speaking to my daughters pediatrician about it and see what he thinks I should do. I wish you the best!

You absolutely should not use a over head shield seat, they are unsafe for children of any age. You didn't mention what kind of seat you have, that would help, but just generally I would say that you're not using it correctly if your child can crawl out of it. I would recommend going to see a carseat tech and to check out www.car-seat.org.

ETA: How exactly are they getting out of their seat? Is he undoing the chest cip or is he just getting her arms out of the straps. Depending on what year your roundabout is you might have the older style chest clip that is a little bit easier to open then the new ones. YOu might want to see about ordering a newer style one from britax. Also, depending on how he fits in the seat make sure that the straps are right at or just above his shoulders. If they are too far above this can also make it easier to get out.

You didn't mention whether or not your child was rear or forward facing but if your child is under the limit for rear facing, meaning under 33lbs and his head is not at the top of the shell I would consider turning him rear facing. Because of the way the straps sit that way it can make it much more difficult to undo themselves. If he is forward facing make sure you have your hugs on which helps with sliding the chest clip.